Feels Like Magic

There was a small, hidden village, full of spells and potions. In this beautiful, thriving community was a young boy named Jax. Jax was the only person in the village who was unhappy; the reason for this was that he had no heart. He was born without one, leaving him empty, cold, and distant. He had no care in the world, as he was numb. He didn’t care about the consequences of his actions.

He went on like this for a long time. When he turned 13, his mother could no longer take it. She wanted her son to feel, to be happy, to love her. So she went to the community leader. He was a gracious man even in his 60s. She got down on her hands and knees and begged him for help. The leader took pity on this woman and promised he would help her son.

He paced the rest of the day. He paced at night. He paced and paced, trying to think of a solution. Finally, he decided it was time to go to the Wise One and ask for help.

The Wise One lived near the stream. He was 70 years old and, being an elephant, had more wisdom and insight than anyone in the world. He was also very kind. People would go to him for help often. If they were true, honest, and good at heart He would always grant them the knowledge they needed to get through their hard times. The leader walked down to the river to beg the Wise One for guidance. When he got to the river he saw a magnificent tea party. The Wise One had been meeting with His friend the Crow. They had a feast of peanuts, beautiful ripe fruit, and homemade tea.

The leader slowly approached Him and bowed down to the ground, kissing the elephant's feet. “Wise One,” he inquired, “Can you see that my heart is full? That I come to you with only good intentions?”

The elephant looked down upon him and saw that he was good, and bowed. “Stand, my friend, and tell me what you desire.”

The leader stood and replied, “A young woman came to me earlier, begging for help. Her son was born with no heart, and does not feel. She wishes he had one so he could love her as she does him. I must help her, I promised I would.”

The Wise One thought for a while. Time passed on in silence as the elephant and the leader stood stagnant. Finally, as the sun kissed the mountains goodnight, He found a solution.

The next day, Jax grabbed the bucket of clothing his mother asked him to wash and began walking down to the stream. He was interrupted by the crow, who was asked for help in the mission to get him a heart. The crow asked him to have some tea with him, and Jax agreed. He wouldn’t enjoy the tea, of course, but he thought he may as well hydrate before walking some more. When he drank the tea, he immediately fell into a deep sleep.

He woke up only hours later in a tent. He couldn’t move his body because he was in such excruciating pain. He could move his neck, though, and so he checked his surroundings. There was only the cot he was on, a few folded blankets in the corner, and a small table which held a glass of water. He lay there for several minutes, thinking. He remembered that he was supposed to wash some clothing by the stream for his mother, but that was it. The clothes! He never washed them! His mother would be incensed!!

But thinking about his mother brought him a weird feeling. He felt warm and soft, and... Something else. He didn’t know yet, but what he was feeling was love.

The leader opened the tent flap and stepped inside. “Oh, good, you’re awake!” he exclaimed.

Jax wanted to talk, but his body hurt so bad he could only say, “What happened?”

The leader explained to him, “Your mother felt sad that you couldn’t feel, and therefore couldn’t experience love. I went to the Wise One, who led me to find a heart for you. It’s a magical heart, so it will start out small, and so will your emotions. We wouldn’t want to overwhelm you with new feelings after all.”

As the days went by, Jax healed from his surgery. He had scars from it, but he didn’t mind them. He continued on with his life. Each day brought new emotions, stronger and stronger with time. He learned to love, and he loved deeply. As he got older and flourished, he learned of pain and heartache. Even his heartache, though, made him happy. He knew he would rather be forlorn than feel nothing, and so even his pain brought him joy.